The Big Day
by Allybee
Summary: Several years after the gang have left Hogwarts, two of them embark on the biggest journey of their lives....HR with some HG, written preHBP.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Ron reached into his pocket for perhaps the millionth time that evening. He was growing incredibly paranoid, he thought as he flattened his hair nervously, but with due reason. He wanted the evening to go as smoothly as possible - hopefully he would only have to do this once, and he didn't want any hitches...

Hermione was still shut up in the bathroom, primping furiously, so he chanced his bets and pulled the ring out of his pocket. There had been a great deal of debate over which ring he should pick. He wanted to get her the most expensive one in his price-range, a multi-coloured gem-encrusted sparkler which was very expensive, and therefore obviously the best. Ginny, however, was not so keen - she thought that Hermione might prefer a more modest diamond solitaire. A forty-minute argument had ensued between them, eventually being settled with a compromise - a diamond with a sapphire set on each side. Ron flicked open the box and gazed admiringly at the ring glittering back at him - he was glad he had asked Ginny's advice. He wanted everything about his proposal to be perfect, and that included the ring.

He had the perfect plan for the evening - drinks in a really fancy bar, followed by a play at a Muggle theatre in Central London which he knew Hermione wanted to see, then dinner at Café de L'Amour, a restaurant in Diagon Alley where they always went on special occasions. They would have their favourite meals, then a bottle of the best wine, and just before they served dessert he would get down on one knee and propose with his perfect ring. This was going to be the best night of his life...

He looked at the clock before letting out a gasp of horror. "Oh my God!" he yelled. "We're an hour late! We're going to miss the start of the play!"

"WHAT?" Hermione exclaimed, popping her head around the door.

"We've got to hurry!" Ron said, pulling on his coat. "We're too late for drinks - come on!"

"Okay, okay! I'm coming!" Hermione said, slipping on her shoes and hurtling out of the flat, slamming the door behind her.

She shot up behind Ron, who was flinging a handful of Floo Powder into the communal fireplace in the front hallway. He grabbed Hermione's hand and pulled her into the glittering green flames, before yelling "The Princess and the Pea!"

Moments later the two lovers appeared in the fireplace at the entrance of The Princess and the Pea, where Ron instantly shot out of the fireplace and began running, hauling Hermione along behind him. Scratch the drinks, he thought as he hurtled along the pavement. They were twenty blocks away from the theatre- if they ran they'd just be able to catch the start of the show...

Hermione and Ron marched away from the theatre, bickering amongst themselves.

"I can't believe you forgot the tickets!" Ron moaned irritably at Hermione, his ears red at the memories of the laughing staff.

"Well, you hauled me out of the flat so fast that I didn't have time to get my bag!" Hermione snapped back, before whispering, "Besides, now we're really stuck. We're in Muggle London, so there's no place to Floo and all my money and our wands are in my bag at home, which means it's too risky to Apparate in case we get stuck!"

"We'll just have to walk then, won't we?" Ron said, taking her arm and swerving down a smaller, almost completely deserted side street. "It's not _that _far to Diagon Alley, and there's a shortcut through the residential area."

"I guess you're right," Hermione said, forcing a smile. Ron had put so much effort into planning a romantic evening- it wasn't his fault that it had gone wrong, so she really shouldn't spoil it by sulking.

A bus drove by, splattering the pair with mud and gunk from head to foot. They stood there in shocked silence for a few seconds before Ron took off his right shoe and hurled it at the speeding bus in a fit of rage. The shoe disappeared off into the darkness, leaving Ron muddy, furious and with only one shoe, making walking somewhat of a challenge. He flung himself down on the curbside with an enraged grunt and folded his arms across his chest. Hermione crouched down beside him.

"It's okay, Ron," she said calmly, putting a comforting arm around his shoulder - she had decided that scolding him for losing his temper would be of no benefit whatsoever. "It's not your fault that things went wrong. It's just bad luck."

Ron felt all of his anger melt away. "Everything's collapsed," he sighed. "I had the _perfect_ evening planned, everything organised, and one by one all of the screws have fallen out. We miss the drinks, forget the tickets and end up stranded in Muggle London, late at night, covered in mud with no money and only three shoes between us. This is the worst night out of my life."

He reached into his pocket, pulled out the ring box and flipped it open. "Marry me."

"_What_?"

"Marry me," Ron repeated.

Hermione stared at him as though he was speaking Mermish, before saying "Why? Why would you want to marry _me_?"

"How about because I love you?" Ron said, moving in closer. His hands were trembling with nerves. "Or how about because, even coated in mud, with moldy leaves in your hair, you're still the most beautiful thing I've ever seen? Or how about the fact that I've spent the whole evening acting like an irrational, disorganized, stupid _wanker_ and you still haven't dumped me, which, believe me, you are _perfectly_ within your rights to do? Are those good enough reasons?" He paused for a few seconds to catch his breath, before asking "So will you? Will you marry me?"

Hermione looked him straight in the eyes. Ron's stomach was rapidly trying to exit his body, along with almost every other vital organ that he owned. The next few seconds felt like an eternity, before Hermione finally broke the silence with one syllable which rang in Ron's ears for the next few weeks.

"Yes."


	2. Girls and Boys

**Chapter 2******

"I can't _believe _you didn't tell me!" Hermione squealed in an unusually girlish manner, as she and Ginny walked back to their table, coffee in hand. They had arranged to meet up during Hermione's lunch break at the café down the road, which they had nicknamed "Hot Stuff Café", as much for the gorgeous male staff as for the piping hot beverages. Ginny shrugged as she placed her mug on the table.

"He's my brother," she said simply. "A secret's a secret. And really, you should be glad he told me."

"Why's that?"

Ginny raised her eyebrows before leaning in. "Let's just say that if you had seen the horror of a ring that he wanted to get you, you'd have thought twice about saying yes."

"That bad, huh?"

"Mmm-hhmm," Ginny mumbled through her sip, before saying enthusiastically, "so tell me about the proposal again!"

"It was _so _sweet," Hermione sighed, smiling reminiscently. "He had this perfect evening planned out, but then it all went so wrong! It was such a shame. And then he just asked me, out of the blue! He told me how much he loved me, it was so romantic!" Both girls let out the obligatory squeal.

"So how'd you get home?"

Hermione frowned slightly. "You know, I don't remember!" she said in surprise. "All I remember is that, when we did get home, we went straight to bed." She let out a sigh of bliss. "That was the _best _sex I've ever had. It was _soooo_... intimate. And when he--"

"Woah! Too far!" Ginny gestured, pulling a face. "I mean, I'm happy for you, but he's my brother! I don't want to know all the details!"

"Uhh huh..." Hermione said, still smiling. "I'm engaged... I'm engaged!"

"I know!" Ginny squealed back, hugging Hermione across the table. "So have you set a date?"

"Not yet, but I'm thinking, possibly July? Six months'll be long enough, surely?"

"Should be..." Ginny said. She took a sip of her coffee before calmly saying "So, have you decided on bridesmaids?"

Hermione shrugged. "I thought perhaps some of the girls from work, maybe my cousin Marcia...?"

"Oh," Ginny said, with a hint of disappointment, before taking another sip.

"And as for my maid of honour, I'm thinking... maybe Ron's little sister?"

Ginny let out a squeal of joy. "Really?"

"Of course," Hermione smiled. "Did you really think that I'd miss you out? Sure, it'll mean I won't be able to have those rust-coloured bridesmaids dresses, but I'm sure I can live with that..." she waved dismissively.

"Yeah, we redheads ruin everything," Ginny giggled, pulling at a strand of her tidy chin length bob. "Speaking of redheads, how's Ron dealing with the engagement?"

"It was no big deal," Ron shrugged. "I just asked her, straight out."

Harry's eyebrows shot up into his messy black hair. He highly doubted Ron's calmness-- he had been a bundle of nerves for all of the week before.

Ron smiled at Harry. "I really can't lie, can I?"

"Nope," Harry shook his head. "Try the truth."

"Most terrifying moment of my life," Ron said, taking a gulp of Butterbeer.

"Thought so."


End file.
